GREENSBORO, N.C. — From learning about hazardous materials and how to extinguish a fire, more than 20 students got their hand at seeing what firefighters in Greensboro do daily.
"I learned about every aspect of the fire department, I even learned about services I didn't even know they had to offer," said Ramona Daniels, a Greensboro Fire Citizen Academy Member.
"There's a lot of stuff that the firefighters do every single day to make our city safe," said Jeannette Davidson-Mayer, a Greensboro Fire Citizen Academy Member.
The main goal of this academy is to create public advocates who educate and protect the community and it teaches vital skills.
"You learn a lot, you learn a lot and by example, if I have an emergency or I have to call 911, I know how it works, how I can help, and how I can help them," said Juan Carrion, a Greensboro Fire Citizen Academy Member.
On the last day of class, each student was able to learn how to put out a fire. An easy way to remember how to do it properly is the acronym, PASS.
P is for pulling the pin out. A is to aim the nozzle toward the fire. S is squeeze the trigger, and the other S is sweep from side to side at the bottom of the fire to put it out.
Also, we used a fire blanket, showing how you need to leave it on the fire until it cools, or it will reignite.
Fire Chief Jim Robinson said these classes give a well-rounded viewpoint on how the fire industry works.
"I think my favorite part was actually what you mentioned earlier, which were the questions," said Fire Chief Robinson. "There were over 50 folks that applied and we had a little over 20 in the class, so I learned something from you and the participants in the class and when you start asking questions, it's very enlightening for us to see 'okay, this is what the public wants to know', and that's what we need to educate on."
Robinson said his hope is to create public advocates who educate and protect the community by using the information they learned during the course.
"I think it went well, you know it was very important to do this for our community, we really want to show off what the Greensboro Fire Department does every single day and what we have to offer," said Fire Chief Jim Robinson. "This is a fantastic organization, I think most people in the city of Greensboro don't know what we do and they don't understand what we have to offer in the community every single day, whether it be building inspections, whether it be fire prevention activities and education and we want to partner with folks."
It even inspired Juan Carrion, who is originally from Nicaragua, to become a firefighter.
"I just came to this country just like four years ago, and when I saw everything about the firefighters, I said I want to be, I want to be one," said Carrion.
Each person became CPR/AED Certified and while the several weeks of classes were filled with fun, like propelling down a building and watching fire examples, each person said they are leaving with more knowledge to spread through the community.
"Thinking of what a fire department does, it's like the tip of the iceberg, coming here shows you everything that the fire department does," said Daniels.
"We want to use this cohort, the uno, the very first, to really help shape and guide us for the future and we really want to use this cohort to educate the public," said Chief Robinson.
"Just making sure people understand what it is our firefighters our men and women do every single day to make sure our city's safe," said Davidson-Mayer.